Power semiconductor devices are widely used as switches in power electronic systems such as motor drives and switch mode power supplies. Power semiconductor devices having low power loss are required in order to obtain a high efficiency power electronic system. In high voltage power electronic systems (e.g., wherein the input and/or output voltage is greater than 200 V), two-carrier power semiconductor devices, (also referred to as bipolar power semiconductor devices), are commonly used to achieve this target. Two-carrier power semiconductor devices that are considered in this voltage rating are the insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) and the metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) gate controlled thyristor (MCT). However, it has been found that IGBT suffers from a high on-state voltage drop and high turn-off energy when scaled into high voltages (e.g., 600-6000 V). In addition, the MCT suffers from a low controllable current capability at high blocking voltage. Accordingly, existing two-carrier semiconductor devices designed for high voltage power electronic systems are inadequate.
The above-described deficiencies of conventional power semiconductor devices are merely intended to provide an overview of some of problems of current technology, and are not intended to be exhaustive. Other problems with the state of the art, and corresponding benefits of some of the various non-limiting embodiments described herein, may become further apparent upon review of the following detailed description.